Archive for October 2013

While elementary school admission in Delhi has augmented severely to nearly 97% today, it’s not complete sure how their actual performance is. There is a great paucity of information when it’s regarding learning outcomes. The Annual Status of Education Report measures learning results of the country, but only in rural areas and not Delhi. Other sample surveys like the National Achievement Survey done by the National Council for Educational Research and Training, the Quality Education Study conducted by Educational Initiatives etc., are beginning to create their own surveys. However, no data actually verifies how much a student is actually learning.

Making investments in standardized assessments should be a priority if India wants its education system to be operational. Every child has to be adequately fortified with pertinent education material for the future. It also include all the significant stakeholders—parents, teachers and policymakers—in improving the quality of imparting education. Then only Delhi school education news will be globally well-known.

Furthermore, there are other interventions which can bring the Delhi education system in the forefront in the global education system. Associating school credit to learning outcomes will hold the schools liable of every student’s achievement records. Nearly 2,200 private Delhi schools catering to low-income communities’ children are at the threat of shutting down for non-compliance issues with either teacher salary, infrastructural or pupil-teacher proportion requirements under RTE or Right to Education Act, based on the reports by National Independent Schools Alliance.

School management committees (SMCs), mandated under this RTE Act should further introduce enhanced governance practices through more parental involvement. However, according to a city-based survey done by JOSH or Joint Operation for Self Help, merely 2% of Delhi schools engage in these committees. JOSH is therefore, directing SMC preparation for over forty Municipal Corporation schools in East Delhi in order to augment capacity building for parents and teachers alike. Boosting such initiatives will further influence parent participation to hold their kids’ schools liable for whatever student performance.

Transforming our school education system thus is a multi-layered process. It requires proper investments in standardized assessments, better governance, better school leadership policies etc. for an all-rounded development of children.

The brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus highlights how women are routinely subjected to abuse and violence in India. It also signifies how the country’s surge towards development has left thousands struggling behind on the margins. There are several ongoing debates about the actual status of safety of women, especially in the national capital. It became rather alive in the Chittaranjan Park D Block Durga Puja celebration this year.

This year it was decided that the Durga puja celebration there will lend its strong voice to the status of women’s safety, as well as an urgent need of the city with a woman as its chief minister to give some power and respect to its common women as well. “What better platform than a festival to engage people in thinking about the problems facing women vis-a-vis their rights and empowerment… a lot of that boils down to the physical fact of how safe this city is for women,” argued Debajyoti Basuroy, an associate in organizing this puja. He added, “Durga puja is about celebrating womanhood. It is about the strength of a woman. We are trying to place the symbolism in today’s context.

It’s positive News for women news in Delhi and seeing how the puja will be organized, it provides a ray of hope for the ‘inferiors’ of our nation. There will be street plays performed by noted performers Arvind Gaur and Asmita, his theatre group. Gaur argued, “We are trying to link the call for women’s rights with the Durga puja. The message is that you worship her but do you give her the same place in society.”

The play is entitled ‘Dastak’ and is an attempt to highlight every aspect of women empowerment through the exploration of important themes like rape, domestic violence, sexual abuse, workplace harassment etc. There will also be women-centered quizzes for people to participate in and win prizes.

The metamorphosis of Women Empowerment in Delhi has been rather fascinating. With different personalities exhibiting their empowered characters, there are on the other hand, cases of untold stories of negligence too. Bound in a false sense of tradition and security, Indian women have always remained in a much neglected state.

The problem begins with the state of the illiterate underprivileged women battling over rudimentary issues like child marriage, dowry, women trafficking, malnourishment and female infanticide. Though they form 88.5% of the labor force in India, they are paid less than men. With no representations, they are exploited monetarily and even if they are the sole breadwinner of their homes, they possess no right to take decisions.

• Education for women is the cornerstone of developed nations. So, through systematic procedures such as computer training, handicrafts, stitching, etc. they can avail a way to uplift themselves both financially and socially.

• There should be more degree of commitment towards working mothers with children, who are involved in educational classes. They should be trained in saving, credit and thrift, skill training as well as income generation activities.

• There should be integration of literacy and professional training so that they can take part in more income generation activities.

• There should be focus on the development of women leadership within all communities.

• Last but not the least, there should be more awareness generation among common masses through projects and IEC materials.

The new FYUP courses has not only made it terribly hectic for the teachers but for the students as well. Teachers are confounded as to what to teach, especially in the case of “Mathematical Awareness.” It has put the students in a great bind too. Initially designed for the blind candidates as a replacement of “Building Mathematical Ability” to be studied in the 2nd semester, some colleges have already been teaching it in the first semester. It has been found on the date-sheet of several colleges’ semester-end exams. This Delhi University News is creating quite some turmoil among all the colleges of the University.

Bipin Tiwary, OSD-EOC and deputy dean of the Delhi University’s Equal Opportunity Cell (EOC) said that he had issued strict instructions to all the colleges forbidding them from teaching it in the 1st semester. He said, “It’s a clear no from us. Nobody will be appearing for the exam this semester. We have issued clear instructions saying the course for blind people is to be taught in the next semester. Nobody will be appearing for the exam this semester.”

The issue has further been perplexed by the fact that first year candidates have been separated into different groups-A and B so that the can be taught four of eight foundation courses in the 1st semester. Group B are being taught the math course along with Literature and Creativity II, Language, Business, Entrepreneurship and Management and Indian History and Culture in the 1st semester. Confusion arises because some colleges have students opting for Mathematical Awareness in the 2nd Semester as well. This will surely interrupt this group-system, particularly at the end of 2nd semester.

Recently the students’ union polls were held in Delhi’s two prestigious central varsities —Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University — amidst high security. While the polling at Delhi University started at 8.30 am and continued till 12.30 pm, in JNU it started at 9.30 am and continued till 6 pm. The students casted their votes through the Electronic Voting Machines whose counting took place the next day.

In Delhi University, twelve candidates fought for the posts of vice president and president, 17 fought for the post of general secretary and 10 fought for the post of joint secretary. These posts are the four major powerful ones in DUSU. Among the political parties running in this election are National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), All India Students Association (AISA) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

Meanwhile in JNU, there were eight struggling for the post of its president, five fighting for the vice-president, six vied for secretary and three came up for joint secretary. The major players were certainly All India Students Association (AISA) and Students Federation of India (SFI). The National Students Union of India (NSUI) and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) too played a big part.

AISA contenders Anubhuti Agnes Bara, Sarfaraz Hamid and Sandeep Saurav were choosen as vice president, joint secretary and general secretary respectively. These results weren’t at all unexpected, seeing from the support AISA gathered during rallies. In the Delhi University polls, the BJP-allied Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad was chosen for three major posts.